Road trip for Zoe

The horses had all their shots on Monday, so when we pulled Monte out for 4-H last night I wasn't too terribly surprised that he wasn't feeling so hot. When E took him into the round pen prior to loading him in the trailer, he was practically dragging his head on the ground. Kinda scary actually - I'm so used to his high energy! There are several horses that have had varying degrees of adverse reactions to the shots, however, so I understood why he was feeling the way he was.

Zoe, on the other hand, did not have any noticeable reaction to the shots, so E and I made a quick decision to take her to 4-H instead. E had to pull her out of her stall and away from her dinner and Zoe made her displeasure over this disruption apparent by kicking out at E. Not a great way to begin an adventure! But the horse settled down in the round pen (E wanted to make sure Zoe had a brain before making the final commitment to riding her!) and loaded into the trailer fairly well. Of course, a manger of hay in there helped considerably. :)

Neither of us had high expectations for this ride night. Zoe has led an easy life these last few months, with little being asked of her. We were also taking her to a new arena, with new horses and people. All of these factors combined did not build a solid foundation for the promise of a smooth ride. But Zoe surprised us! She only had one incident of spooking (the traffic cone in the arena was going to eat her and caused her to back up several feet, snorting the whole way) and really gave E a nice ride. Being that she is so out of shape, E did have to finish up a lot sooner than she would of on Monte, but that ended up being okay too since our trailer buddy was riding a young horse who also pooped out after an hour of work.

I'm so glad that Zoe proved to be adaptable enough for E to use in a pinch!

Finally spring?

This weekend totally feels like spring - 30s at night, 40s to 50s during the day. And sunshine! That's the best part, having sun shining on your shoulders until well after 5:00 p.m..

I didn't plan on riding today but when I got out to the barn this morning it was just too nice to not pull Zoe out and at least groom her. And if I'm going to groom her, well I might as well as lunge her...and if I'm going to lunge her I might as well saddle her up and get on!

Really, she was just so cooperative and sweet that I couldn't pass up the opportunity to hop on for a short ride. I think the high strung, spooky horse I've been experiencing the past month or so must have been the result of her cycling into heat combined with a bit of windy, variable weather. Today she calmly waited for me to put on her halter, was attentive while we walked, and even lowered her head for me during bridling. What a good pony!

E also took a short turn on her and managed to make Zoe sweat a bit. Zoe is in much better shape, though, and was able to maintain a canter for a longer period of time. She's not quite as flabby when she runs past now. :)

Zoe did give a little buck when E cantered in the left lead. Nothing major - I'm sure even I could have sat it. E says you can totally feel Zoe rounding her back just before she tries to buck, so you have plenty of warning. We think she might be a little bit sore and was complaining about the cantering. Just a guess though.....

Lots of Pony Club happenings these days. I'm coordinating our region's Quiz rally, which will be taking place next weekend. Looking forward to the event - and to its conclusion! :) I also joined Horsemasters, the adult version of Pony Club. I'm totally looking forward to riding on a regular basis with other adults. We'll start taking Sunday lessons along with the kiddos in a couple of weeks.